Of the 1,028 students who had appeared for the board exams this year, 930 passed, said Ayush Prasad.

What has contributed to the significant improvement in the board results this year? Has there been an increase in the pass percentage as well as marks of the students?

This year, students of both the government-run as well as aided ashramashalas have done exceedingly well. Of the 1,028 students who had appeared for the board examination this year, 930 students passed. Our pass percentage is 90.47.

Last year, 1,067 students had taken the board examination, of whom 937 had passed, making our pass percentage 86.82 per cent. The number of schools that have recorded 100 per cent results has increased this year — seven of the 23 schools have reported 100 per cent results as against four last year.

Barring one, most of the schools have reported pass percentage of more than 80 per cent. If we talk of individual students, the ITDP topper, Kiran More, has scored 93.80 per cent, as against the 86 per cent scored by the topper last year.

We have seen an increase of 8 to 14 per cent in the marks obtained by students in the region this year.

Were any special initiatives undertaken by the department to improve the academic performance of students?

We had introduced a slew of measures in the beginning of the academic session that aimed to improve the academic performance of students. The activities were holistic in nature, such as improvement of physical infrastructure of the schools and focusing on weaker students.

Infrastructure-wise, we had carried out a detailed survey of the needs of the schools and started working on them. It involved construction of bathrooms, perimetre walls and others. Last year, development projects worth Rs 2.5 crore were implemented in the ashramshalas.

On the the academic front, a review meeting was conducted to identify the weaker students. A committee of teachers was formed to draw up a question bank, comprising the frequently asked questions in board examinations, along with chapterwise topics. Besides, instead of one, we had three pre-board examinations.

What measures were taken to improve the percentage of students who scored well in the pre-boards?

Based on the results of the three pre-board examinations, we identified 25 students who had scored 80 per cent and above. A special curriculum was framed for such students. A month before examinations, we had held a 15-day camp in Ghodegaon where such students followed a rigorous schedule — woke up at 6 am and studied till 10 pm.

A sense of discipline was instilled in the student, which, I think, helped. We noticed an increase of 8-14 per cent in their marks.

What are your plans to ensure that students pursue higher studies? Also, are there any specific plans for the upcoming session?

We will hold counseling sessions for students to help them choose a career. Meanwhile, we will soon start coaching classes for those who will be taking compartment examinations. For the next academic year, the focus is on the overall development of students — both academic and physical.

We will also send our teachers on study tours to help them learn from other teaching practices. We want them to travel to Delhi to see the working of the government-run schools there.